From a captivating storyteller (Wall Street Journal), the natural history of humankind told through our long relationship with birds

For the whole of human history, we have lived alongside birds. We have hunted and domesticated them for food; venerated them in our mythologies, religions, and rituals; exploited them for their natural resources; and been inspired by them for our music, art, and poetry. 
 
In Ten Birds That Changed the World, naturalist and author Stephen Moss tells the gripping story of this long and intimate relationship through key species from all seven of the world's continents. From Odin's faithful raven companions to Darwin's finches, and from the wild turkey of the Americas to the emperor penguin as potent symbol of the climate crisis, this is a fascinating, eye-opening, and endlessly engaging work of natural history.

From a captivating storyteller (Wall Street Journal), the natural history of humankind told through our long relationship with birds

For the whole of human history, we have lived alongside birds. We have hunted and domesticated them for food; venerated them in our mythologies, religions, and rituals; exploited them for their natural resources; and been inspired by them for our music, art, and poetry. 
 
In Ten Birds That Changed the World, naturalist and author Stephen Moss tells the gripping story of this long and intimate relationship through key species from all seven of the world's continents. From Odin's faithful raven companions to Darwin's finches, and from the wild turkey of the Americas to the emperor penguin as potent symbol of the climate crisis, this is a fascinating, eye-opening, and endlessly engaging work of natural history.

Swallow and starling, puffin and peregrine, blue tit and blackcap. We use these names so often that few of us ever pause to wonder about their origins. What do they mean? Where did they come from? And who created them? The words we use to name birds are some of the most lyrical and evocative in the English language. They also tell incredible stories: of epic expeditions, fierce battles between rival ornithologists, momentous historical events and touching romantic gestures. Through fascinating encounters with birds, and the rich cast of characters who came up with their names, in Mrs Moreau's Warbler Stephen Moss takes us on a remarkable journey through time. From when humans and birds first shared the earth to our fraught present-day coexistence, Moss shows how these names reveal as much about ourselves and our relationship with the natural world as about the creatures they describe.

THE MUST-HAVE GIFT FOR BIRD LOVERS THIS CHRISTMAS

'Wherever there is a stretch of water for them to find food and make their nest, you will come across swans'

The Mute Swan is not so much a bird, as a national treasure: the avian equivalent of Sir David Attenborough or the Queen. These huge and stately creatures are part of our urban and rural landscapes, a constant presence on lakes, rivers and ponds throughout Britain. Yet despite their familiarity, they are often misunderstood; and while many people love swans, others fear them.

Swans also feature in myths and legends, art and literature, dance and music, not just in Britain but all around the world. Stephen Moss delves into the facts and fiction about these charismatic birds, describes their seasonal life cycle and examines their central role in our history and culture. He also includes stories about 'wild swans' - Whooper and Bewicks - that visit us in winter; and the Black Swan of Australia.

With beautiful illustrations throughout, this eye-opening biography reveals the hidden secrets of one of Britain's best-known birds.

Ten years on from the first, groundbreaking Planet Earth, the most incredible advances in technology and scientific discovery are used to bring the most exciting and immersive picture of our world's wildlife yet. With more than 250 breathtaking photographs and stills from the BBC Natural History Unit's spectacular footage, this is an extraordinary new look at the complex life of some of the most amazing places on Planet Earth. Each chapter reveals an environment--some never-before-seen, some astonishingly familiar--defined by a unique set of rules required for survival. From the most desolate desert to the depths of the jungle, from blistering heat and freezing cold to perpetual darkness and deadly UV, discover how a whole host of creatures have adapted to life in the most extreme conditions. And how they compete with one another to become the largest, the fastest, the most poisonous, or most devious--all in a bid to survive. Planet Earth II includes the first in-depth look at the urban environment, and the surprising range of behaviors occurring right under our noses, as well as some previously untouched island worlds. Filmed with remarkable 5k and infra-red technology, these are the challenges, the confrontations, and the triumphs of some of the most extraordinary creatures in the natural world, told from their perspective. This is our planet, as you have never seen it before.

The wren is a paradox of a bird. On the one hand wrens are ubiquitous. They are Britain's most common bird, with 8.5 million breeding pairs and, have by far the loudest song in proportion to their size. They also thrive up and down Britain and Ireland: from the smallest city garden to remote offshore islands, blustery moors to chilly mountains.

Yet many people, particularly a younger generation, are not sure if they have ever seen a wren. Perhaps because the wren is so tiny, weighing just as much as two A4 sheets of paper, and so busy, always on the move, more mouse than bird.

However if we cast our eyes back to recent history wrens were a mainstay of literary, cultural, and popular history. The wren was on postage stamps and the farthing, it featured in nursery rhymes and greetings cards, poems, and rural wren hunts,still a recent memory in Ireland particularly.

With beautiful illustrations throughout, this captivating year-in-the-life biography reveals the hidden secrets of this fascinating bird that lives right on our doorstep.

A sumptuous BBC TV tie-in chronicling a year in the life of the landscapes and wildlife of Europe's greatest wilderness: the Scottish Highlands.

In the very north of Britain, far from the bustling cities and picturesque countryside to the south, lies Western Europe's greatest wilderness: the Scottish Highlands. This is a land shaped by the flow of ancient ice, where snow-capped mountains tower over ink-black lochs, Golden Eagles soar over heather-clad moors, and Red Deer stags engage in mortal combat for the right to win a mate. Along the coast, sea cliffs and offshore islands teem with millions of seabirds, while the seas themselves are home to Basking Sharks, Orcas and Bottlenose Dolphins.

The Highlands may at first sight seem bleak and desolate, but they are also filled with secret wonders, from the ancient Caledonian pine forests to the vast Flow Country, and from the sheer granite cliffs of Handa to the mysterious depths of Loch Ness.

In this lavish companion to the BBC TV series, Stephen Moss's thoughtful, authoritative text is accompanied by spectacular photography from Laurie Campbell. Highlands - Scotland's Wild Heart follows a year in the lives of a stellar cast of wild animals as they live, feed, breed, and die in this beautiful, yet unforgiving landscape--a land where only the toughest survive.

Penguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online.

Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.

The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers' story comprehension and develop vocabulary.

Visit the Penguin Readers website
Exclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and answer keys.

A few years ago, the BBC made the TV programme Dynasties about animal families across the world. They chose to film David and his family - a group of chimpanzees in south-eastern Senegal. Sometimes families are happy and sometimes they fight. Sometimes life is good and sometimes it is not easy. It is the same for chimpanzees, and for all animal families.

Naturalist Stephen Moss digs beneath the surface of some of our most popular Christmas carols in an ornithological celebration of the Festive Season.

Using the structure of the carol as a jumping off point, he explores the place of twelve fascinating British birds in our history, culture and landscape. Some of the birds are obvious, there's the swan and of course the partridge. Other chapters are loose interpretations of a verse: for drummers drumming he delves into the woodpecker's distinctive drumming tap. Woodpeckers, he explains, have special padded skulls to mitigate against using its head like hammer drills. They carefully select dead trees for the most hollow, sonorous sound.

With brilliant anecdotes and insights, Stephen Moss weaves history, culture, bird behaviour and folklore into a compelling narrative for each species, tracing its fortunes over the past two centuries.

'A superb naturalist and writer' Chris Packham author of Finger in the Sparkle Jar

'Moss has carved out an enviable niche as a chronicler of the natural world' Daily Mail

From the bestselling author of The Robin, The Wren, and The Twelve Birds of Christmas. With around 700,000 breeding pairs, the swallow is one of the most familiar birds in Britain. Though we consider the swallow to be 'our' bird, we also share this beloved creature with millions of others across the globe. Whilst we see it on a daily basis for half the year, the swallow then flies south to Africa, living on only in our memory in the long, dark winter. In The Swallow Stephen Moss documents a year of observing the swallow close to home and in the field to shed light on the secret life of this extraordinary bird. We trace the swallow's life cycle and journey, including the epic 12,000-mile round trip it takes every year to enable it to enjoy a life of almost eternal sunshine, and the key part the swallow plays in our traditional and popular culture. With beautiful illustrations throughout, this captivating year-in-the-life biography reveals the hidden secrets of this charismatic and beautiful bird.

A bestselling British birder, naturalist, writer and broadcaster leads us on a springtime journey of discovery through daily walks in the area surrounding his home, highlighting the joys of connecting with wildlife and our environment.

As spring arrives, Stephen Moss's Somerset garden is awash with birdsong: chiffchaffs, wrens, robins and more. Overhead, buzzards soar, ravens tumble and the season gathers pace. But this equinox is unlike any other. As the nation goes into lockdown, Stephen records the wildlife around his home, with his fox-red Labrador, Rosie, by his side. When old routines fall away, and blue skies are no longer crisscrossed by contrails, they discover the bumblebees, butterflies and birdsong on their local patch.

This evocative account underlines how a global crisis changed the way we relate to the natural world, giving us hope for the future. And it puts down a marker for a new normal: when, during that brief but unforgettable spring, nature gave us comfort, hope and joy.

Following his bestselling biographies of some of our favorite birds, including The Robin, The Wren and The Owl - author and naturalist Stephen Moss now turns his attention to an incredible bird that lives on nearly every continent and, despite seeming plain at first glance, takes our breath away when they take to the skies in huge flocks - the Starling.

Though it is easy to overlook a solitary starling, even with its beautiful iridescent plumage, when they come together in the thousands they take to the skies in awe-inspiring swooping flocks called murmurations. Starlings live almost all over the world - they're are common bird throughout Europe and the Palearctic to western Mongolia, and are recent residents of Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United States, Mexico, Argentina, South Africa and Fiji, migrating seasonally as far North as Scandinavia. Discover how their love of fruit gets them into trouble, how they can help farmers by eating insects, how their skill for mimicry has inspired centuries of folklore and how they were brought to new continents by one man's passion for Shakespeare.

Selected as a Book of the Year 2017 in The Times
'There is no doubt that Moss's book, with its charming cover and quaint illustrations, will make it into many a stocking this year' The Times

No other bird is quite so ever-present and familiar, so embedded in our culture, as the robin. With more than six million breeding pairs, the robin is second only to the wren as Britain's most common bird. It seems to live its life alongside us, in every month and season of the year. But how much do we really know about this bird?

In The Robin Stephen Moss records a year of observing the robin both close to home and in the field to shed light on the hidden life of this apparently familiar bird. We follow its lifecycle from the time it enters the world as an egg, through its time as a nestling and juvenile, to the adult bird; via courtship, song, breeding, feeding, migration - and ultimately, death. At the same time we trace the robin's relationship with us: how did this particular bird - one of more than 300 species in its huge and diverse family - find its way so deeply and permanently into our nation's heart and its social and cultural history? It's a story that tells us as much about ourselves as it does about the robin itself.

Penguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online.

Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.

The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers' story comprehension and develop vocabulary.

Visit the Penguin Readers website
Exclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and answer keys.

Sometimes families are happy, and sometimes they fight. Sometimes life is good, and sometimes it is not easy. It is the same for the Marsh Lions in Kenya's Masai Mara, and for all animal families.